As couplers generally employed in silver halide color photographic light sensitive materials, there are known a yellow coupler comprised of a open-chained ketomethylene compound, a magenta coupler comprised of a pyrazolone or pyrazolotriazole compound and a cyan coupler comprised of a phenol or naphthol compound.
5-Pyrazolone compounds have conventionally employed as a magenta coupler. Known pyrazolone magenta couplers are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,600,788 and 3,519,429 and JP-A 49-111631 and 57-35858 (hereinafter, the expression, "JP-A" refers to unexamined and published Japanese Patent Application). However, as described in The Theory of the Photographic Process, Macmillan Co. 4th Edition (1977), page 356-358; Fine Chemical Vol.14, No.8 page 38-41 (published by CMC) and Abstracts of Annual Conference in 1985 of the Society of Photographic Science and Technology of Japan page 108-110, a dye formed from the pyrazolone magenta coupler has an unwanted side absorption and its improvement is desired.
On the other hand, as described in the above references, a dye formed from the pyrazolotriazole magenta coupler has no side absorption. This coupler is superior one, as described in the above references, U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,725,067, 3,758,309 and 3,810,761. However, light fastness of a azomethine dye formed from the pyrazolotriazole magenta coupler is markedly low, leading to deterioration in photographic performance of silver halide color photographic light sensitive material and particularly those used for prints.
Studies of improvements in the light fastness have been made so far. JP-A 59-125732, 61-282845, 61-292639 and 61-279855 disclose a technique in which a pyrazoloazole magenta coupler is employed in combination with a phenol compound or phenyl ether compound; JP-A 61-72246, 62-208048, 62-157031 and 63-163351 disclose a technique of using an amine compound in combination. JP-A 63-24256 proposes a pyrazoloazole magenta coupler having an alkyloxyphenyloxy group. However, improvements in light fastness of magenta dye images through these techniques were proved to be insufficient and further improvements are strongly desired.